Women's Golf

WOMEN'S GOLF SHOOTS FOR BIG SKY TITLE AT CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento State women's golf team will return to the Boulder Creek Golf Club in Boulder City, Nev., for the 2017 Big Sky Conference Championship beginning on Friday, April 21. The team will play one round per day during the three-day event. The winner of the Big Sky Championship will advance to an NCAA regional in May.

Sacramento State will compete with a lineup of Julia Becker, Astha Madan, Chloe Bartek, Sofie Babic and Nishtha Madan. The Hornets are currently ranked second in the conference in both stroke average and the Golfstat rankings. Sacramento State has averaged 75.06 during the year which trails only Idaho who has an average of 74.47. The Vandals are ranked 67th in Div. I while Sacramento State is 102nd. The next closest team to the pair is Portland State and 123rd.

The Hornets have been the most consistent program in the Big Sky over the last 10 years but are looking for its first title since running away from the field in 2007. Since that year, Sacramento State has finished second six times. Last season, the Hornets finished with a total of 869 to fall one stroke shy of Idaho.

Individually, Julia Becker is the highest ranked member of the Sacramento State team. The sophomore is on pace to set the school single-season record with a stroke average of 74.13 in eight tournaments. She has twice been named the Big Sky Golfer of the Week and has a pair of tournament victories. The Las Vegas native was recently named to the all-Big Sky first team. Last season, she tied for 11th at the tournament.

Astha Madan and Bartek are the only members of the team to have competed in more than one Big Sky Championship. The pair each tied for fifth place a year ago at 1-over par. Madan currently ranks second on the team with an average of 75.04. She has finished among the top 10 in three tournaments, including the Rainbow Wahine Invitational where she tied for fourth place. Bartek owns an average of 76.13. She tied for fifth at the Rainbow Wahine Invitational for her top finish.

Babic and Nishtha Madan are both true freshmen who have been in the Hornet lineup all season. Babic ranks third in the team in scoring average of 75.13. She tied for second at the Rose City Collegiate during the fall and was third at the Sacramento State Invitational in March. Madan is averaging 75.39 during the year with a tie for 11th at the Red Rocks Invitational as her top finish.

Sacramento State competed in eight tournaments during the year and finished with a 28-3 record against Big Sky competition in those events. Two of those losses came in the first two events of the year. Idaho defeated the Hornets by 15 strokes at the WSU Cougar Cup in September. The next week, Weber State knocked off Sacramento State at the Pat Lesser Harbottle Invitational outside of Seattle. However, the Hornets finished the season 4-1 against WSU. The only other loss came against Northern Arizona at the Red Rocks Invitational in Sedona, Ariz. Sacramento State avenged that loss at the Hornet Invitational and finished the year 2-1 against the Lumberjacks.

During the first round of the Big Sky Championships, the Hornets will be paired with Idaho and Portland State. The first pairing will go off the first at 9:15 with the last group teeing off at 9:51. Live scoring can be followed by selecting the link at the top of the page.